4 ms·

I'm not trying to be snarky but is it really competition if it's just two players?

Silhouette 9y ago
It is competition, but whether it's enough competition to achieve the beneficial effects we usually associate with a competitive market is a different question entirely.
maneesh 9y ago
Yes. Isn't a basketball game a competition?
- everly 9y ago
  Are there any leagues with just two basketball teams?
  - maxerickson 9y ago
    The Harlem Globetrotters towed around a stooge team for a long time.
    - everly 9y ago
      Right, and I don't think anyone would describe the Globetrotters vs. the Generals as competitive.
  - maybeiambatman 9y ago
    It's funny. Anyone following the NBA right now would tell you it's a league with just two teams :P
    - dopamean 9y ago
      Right. And they'd also say the league is incredible uncompetitive.
  - imjk 9y ago
    Touche
  - lmm 9y ago
    I'm not aware for basketball, but e.g. the Boat Race has only two teams, and is very much competitive.
- NTDF9 9y ago
  There's usually a league with more than 2 teams :)
- skciva 9y ago
  When two teams easily win unless they play each other, is it a competitive league?
  - Dan_Nguyen 9y ago
    On a tangential note, that might not be the case anymore next year. The Thunder got Paul George, the Rockets traded for Chris Paul, Gordon Hayward is now on the Celtics, and Jimmy Butler is in Minnesota. Meanwhile, there's rumors that Kyrie Irving wants to be traded.
- elif 9y ago
  Basketball is winner-take-all and is itself part of a larger competition (a season which leads to a playoff), making it a poor analogy. A better metaphor would be 2 people playing golf. They can both achieve personal bests during the same match.
- dopamean 9y ago
  This is not a accurate comparison as other commenters have pointed out...
- untog 9y ago
  > Facebook’s formidable ad business, along with Alphabet Inc.’s Google, soaked up 99% of the online ad industry’s growth last year Some sports metaphors really don't work.
hueving 9y ago
Competition doesn't have anything to do with number of players. As long as there is more than one party and they are not colluding, they will compete for each others market and push prices down or increase the quality of service. Pro-competition laws aren't about what's fair for other people that might want to compete, they are about what's best for consumers.
lmm 9y ago
I remember seeing a paper that in any market where the top 4 players have more than 60% of the market, they'll naturally behave in a cartel-like way in terms of pricing etc.. So it's not ideal. But still, two players seems much better than one in terms of, if nothing else, limiting quite how much customers are soaked for.

It is competition, but whether it's enough competition to achieve the beneficial effects we usually associate with a competitive market is a different question entirely.

maneesh 9y ago

Yes. Isn't a basketball game a competition?

everly 9y ago
Are there any leagues with just two basketball teams?
- maxerickson 9y ago
  The Harlem Globetrotters towed around a stooge team for a long time.
  - everly 9y ago
    Right, and I don't think anyone would describe the Globetrotters vs. the Generals as competitive.
- maybeiambatman 9y ago
  It's funny. Anyone following the NBA right now would tell you it's a league with just two teams :P
  - dopamean 9y ago
    Right. And they'd also say the league is incredible uncompetitive.
- imjk 9y ago
  Touche
- lmm 9y ago
  I'm not aware for basketball, but e.g. the Boat Race has only two teams, and is very much competitive.
NTDF9 9y ago
There's usually a league with more than 2 teams :)
skciva 9y ago
When two teams easily win unless they play each other, is it a competitive league?
- Dan_Nguyen 9y ago
  On a tangential note, that might not be the case anymore next year. The Thunder got Paul George, the Rockets traded for Chris Paul, Gordon Hayward is now on the Celtics, and Jimmy Butler is in Minnesota. Meanwhile, there's rumors that Kyrie Irving wants to be traded.
elif 9y ago
Basketball is winner-take-all and is itself part of a larger competition (a season which leads to a playoff), making it a poor analogy. A better metaphor would be 2 people playing golf. They can both achieve personal bests during the same match.
dopamean 9y ago
This is not a accurate comparison as other commenters have pointed out...
untog 9y ago
> Facebook’s formidable ad business, along with Alphabet Inc.’s Google, soaked up 99% of the online ad industry’s growth last year Some sports metaphors really don't work.

hueving 9y ago

Competition doesn't have anything to do with number of players. As long as there is more than one party and they are not colluding, they will compete for each others market and push prices down or increase the quality of service. Pro-competition laws aren't about what's fair for other people that might want to compete, they are about what's best for consumers.

lmm 9y ago

I remember seeing a paper that in any market where the top 4 players have more than 60% of the market, they'll naturally behave in a cartel-like way in terms of pricing etc.. So it's not ideal. But still, two players seems much better than one in terms of, if nothing else, limiting quite how much customers are soaked for.